Residents and a hospital official in the city of Gao confirmed the news to Reuters.

The northern region of Mali was taken over by Al Qaeda-affiliated rebels five months ago, the AP noted.

One of the armed Islamist groups that controls northern Mali, the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJWA), said it intended to impose Sharia law on all of Mali. According to Reuters, the group has already carried out public flogging of adulterers and other corporal punishments, though this was the first group amputation.

Oumar Ould Hamaha, speaking to Reuters on behalf of the group, said, "According to the Sharia, the men had to face double punishment for theft and highway robbery."